Greenacre Public School helping student teachers learn

UWS Lecturer Katina Zammit and Greenacre primary students

Often the hardest part of getting children to learn is making the material relevant and interesting. The Sun-Herald's Class Scoop program, part of the Priority Schools Literacy Project, aims to do just that by teaching students literacy skills using articles from this newspaper.

Almost 60 third-year students from the bachelor of education (primary) degree at the University of Western Sydney will be sent into schools in the Bankstown and Penrith areas in early May 2004 to teach the Class Scoop Program.

The schools involved are all part of the NSW Department of Education's Priority Schools initiative which provides extra funding to 547 economically disadvantaged schools.

At Greenacre Public School, one of the schools taking part in the Class Scoop Program, 95 per cent of the students come from non-English speaking backgrounds.

Andrew Buchan, relieving principal at the school, said newspapers 'had a particularly interesting role in society and it's important for children to understand it.'

He said newspapers were a useful tool in teaching literacy as students were able to read about topics that were relevant to their lives, such as sport.

'This relates back to their personal interest, their personal experience and it's drawing on that background knowledge and understanding,' Mr Buchan said. 'We want our kids to read the newspaper because we want our adults to read the paper. But we also want them to think about what's being said. The earlier that starts, the better, because we see it as pretty crucial.'

UWS literacy program co-ordinator Katina Zammit said the interactive nature of the Class Scoop program, which allowed students to ask journalists questions on the website was a useful tool. 'It also provides an avenue for the children to see information and communication technology as part of the regular classroom, not something special or uniquue,' Ms Zammit said.

'The kids get a deeper understanding of how the English language works and that's very important for students who come from a different socio-economic background to that which schools are used to.

'Schooling is very white, middle class. So if you come from a different culture, or a different social background, a student can easily be turned off school, it is not engaging. So using a text that is something a student would find at home means there's a greater purpose in it.

Ms Zammit said she hoped the program would make students more interested in, and excited about, literacy and education.

'It's not going to change everything, but what it can do is assist students to see that school is a place that is relevant and that education can be useful to them,' she said. 'That will hopefully then flow on to staying in school and looking at other options.'

Project background

Regional primary schools in Sydney's greater west welcome student teachers from UWS and provide them with the classroom experience they need to achieve professional qualifications. In a semester UWS students spend around three weeks in schools, watching and learning from classroom teachers (3 days) followed by their own project work with the class (3 weeks).

This year UWS professional experience student teachers will be working on a special project for schools which has been sponsored by the NSW Department of Education and Training.

The University of Western Sydney Primary Literacy Pilot

Student teachers enrolled in the UWS School of Education and Early Childhood Studies and studying Language and Literacy 2 will be focussing on media texts as part of their professional experience in 2004.

The Sun-Herald newspaper is being used as the source of media texts. The Sun-Herald's on-line 'classroom' site Sun-Herald Scoop is a key part of the project.

Students will negotiate with classroom teachers on choosing media texts to be worked on along with other ways the Sun-Herald could be used in the classroom.

The UWS School of Education and Early Childhood Studies has developed this project to expand student teachers' knowledge and understanding of the use of authentic texts in the classroom. It also teaches the range of literacies required for our primary school children to ensure they can participate fully in Australian society.

The pilot involves 60 third year students from the UWS Bachelor of Education (Primary) degree course. They will be working in eight schools in the Bankstown and Penrith areas.

The Sun-Herald has invited our students to prepare lessons which will be published on the Sun-Herald Scoop website at www.classscoop.sunherald.com.au

So UWS student teachers can use classroom experiences learnt beside local teachers to benefit the profession across all NSW primary schools. This will positively influence curriculum development.

This project is made possible by the NSW Department of Education and Training

The Priority Schools Funding Program (PSFP) is managed by the Department's Equity Co-ordination Unit. It supports more than 500 schools in economically disadvantaged communities. The PSFP aims to improve students' literacy and numeracy achievement and the participation of the students and their families in schooling.

In 2004 the Department is sponsoring the delivery of Sun-Herald newspapers to PSFP schools every Monday.

The newspapers will be used as teaching aids to help improve literacies across Key Learning Areas. The project is also helping to fill the gap left by the cancellation of the ABC's 'Behind the News' program.

The Department is working on this pilot project with the Sun-Herald Education Unit and the Whitlam Institute within the University of Western Sydney.

The Sun-Herald Education Unit

The Sun-Herald Education Unit will provide support and training for classroom teachers on invitation from participating schools.

The Whitlam Institute within the University of Western Sydney

The Whitlam Institute was established by the University of Western Sydney to work on special projects which help enrich the lives of families in Sydney's west and across Australia. It is a 'living ideas' centre with an active public education program.

It works in partnership with University lecturers to develop opportunities for student learning which directly benefit our community.

This literacy project was developed by a team of organisations including the Whitlam Institute, the UWS School of Education and Early Childhood Studies, the Sun-Herald and, of course, would not be possible without the leadership of the NSW Department of Education and Training.